A package of bills to improve and reform livestock disaster programs have been introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, respectively, by Congressman Roger Marshall, R-KS, and Sen. Jerry Moran, R-KS, respectively.

The four bills were introduced Wednesday and address changes to two USDA programs – the Farm Service Agency’s Livestock Indemnity Program and Emergency Conservation Program. The changes to those programs are based on Kansas farmers’ and ranchers’ feedback following southwest Kansas wildfires earlier this year.

Moran and Marshall said in speaking with farmers and ranchers in Clark County, Kansas, who were impacted by the March wildfires, it became apparent that there is a lot of red tape they must go through in order to get disaster aid.

Moran said the impact of the legislation will be felt nationwide, particularly as natural disasters continue to impact farmers and ranchers in other parts of the country.

Biosecurity Research Institute provides upper-level training for students working with transboundary animal diseases Tuesday, March 7, 2017 Program fellows Fellows in the transboundary animal diseases training program don scrubs and protective outerwear in a teaching laboratory at the Biosecurity Research Institute at Kansas State University.

On a cloudy summer day, Iowa farmer Wendy Johnson lifts the corner of a mobile chicken tractor, a lightweight plastic frame covered in wire mesh that has corralled her month-old meat chickens for a few days, and frees several dozen birds to peck the surrounding area at will. Soon, she’ll sell these chickens to customers at local markets in eastern Iowa.

The demand for beef, pork and chicken raised on smaller farms closer to home is growing. Now, some Midwest farmers, like Johnson, are exploring how to graze livestock to meet those demands while still earning a profit.

If you pull a fire alarm in any large U.S. city, it's likely that paid firefighters waiting at a nearby station will quickly respond. But seven out of 10 American firefighters are volunteers. They cover vast sections of the country, making up an aging network that is increasingly understaffed and overworked.

As The Texas Observer reports, the Llano Estacado could be undone by conservation efforts put in place to save the region from the Dust Bowl. At issue is the Texas Panhandle’s natural predilection for encouraging wildfires.

Kansas ranchers impacted by wildfires could receive more than $18 million in federal funds for fencing lost in the Starbuck wildfire, which began in Oklahoma and spread into southwest Kansas on March 6.

As The Hutch News reports, the fire burned over 660,000 acres in Kansas and Oklahoma and 500,000 acres in Clark, Comanche and Meade Counties making it the largest in Kansas history.

All Cody Crockett ever wanted to be was a cowboy. And for a short time, he got his wish.Crockett worked on the 9,000-acre Franklin Ranch, about 70 miles northeast of Amarillo, where on March 6, a massive wildfire broke out.

Cody, his girlfriend Sydney Wallace, and rancher Sloan Everett, were killed while trying to rescue livestock.

Texas Monthly features the trio in an article that also includes photos and video.